Development of Marvel Studios projects in recent years has reportedly been messy behind the scenes, to the detriment of visual effects artists.

In a new report from Vulture, Marvel is singled out for the studio's lack of organization in collaborating with VFX houses for slates of cinematic releases and Disney+ shows. According to an anonymous animator who worked on past Marvel Cinematic Universe projects, one frequent issue that aggravates contractors is Marvel's request to alter endings rather than stick to what was initially agreed upon in pre-production. The animator explained, "It’s kind of like putting the last coat of paint on a car, and while you’re putting on this last coat, you’re trying to decide what color you want. They don’t figure stuff out early enough."

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Another issue cited by the same artist was how Marvel apparently takes a freewheeling approach to giant set pieces. "They don’t figure stuff out early enough. So they rewrite, redo, and fumble in the dark for a long time while we are doing the VFX," they said. "It was just, 'This hero avoids many things for this amount of time.' Everything was blank. Basically, the studio said to the VFX artists, 'Figure it out. Make it look cool.' They had no idea what they wanted to do." The artist went on to explain how the issue has far-reaching consequences for the VFX field at large. "Since the movies work so well, people think, 'Oh, well that’s the way to do it.' That’s the hard part. There’s a better way that’s less stressful on the artist and less expensive for sure."

Marvel's Big VFX Problem

Since the start of Phase Four of the MCU, Marvel has been under fire for its treatment of VFX artists. Guardians of the Galaxy VFX artist Dhruv Govil publically attacked the studio in July 2022 for overworking third-party effects houses for little compensation, which opened up greater scrutiny of Marvel's business practices. "Working on Marvel shows is what pushed me to leave the VFX industry," Govil said. "They're a horrible client, and I've seen way too many colleagues break down after being overworked, while Marvel tightens the purse strings."

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In response to the criticisms, Marvel talent like She-Hulk: Attorney at Law's Tatiana Maslany and showrunner Jessica Gao expressed support for the VFX community. "I think everyone on this panel stands in solidarity with workers and is pro-workers," Gao said. Marvel has reportedly been mulling over creating its own VFX house to combat complaints from third-party companies and workers.

Marvel's next VFX-heavy production, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, hits theaters on Feb. 17.

Source: Vulture